News
20 December 2022
Moving towards a patient-tailored consent process in spine surgery in the 21st century
On 19 October 2022, Patient Line committee members hosted a symposium on spine surgery consent in the 21st century for the very first time. Over 100 spine professionals attended the event in Milan.
12 July 2022
Insights from a webinar about Early Onset Scoliosis (EOS)
The session commenced with the definition of early onset scoliosis and why this type is such a challenge due to skeletal immaturity at presentation. The predominant reason for this is the potential for the spine to continue to grow.
19 April 2022
Insights from a recent webinar about the treatment of (geriatric) C2 fracture
Fractures of the second cervical vertebra (C2) are quite frequent, mainly in the elderly population and they put a therapeutic challenge to spinal surgeons in the elderly patient, bone healing is slow and often incomplete without surgical instrumentation, having as a result a pseudarthrosis, with mechanical instability leading to pain and sometimes even neurological risks.
8 March 2022
Insights from a recent webinar on-surgical management of lumbar spinal stenosis
The most common reason why people over 65 have spine surgery is lumbar spinal stenosis. Lumbar spinal stenosis is a term used to describe a condition where patients present with nerve symptoms in their legs such as nerve pain, pins and needles or numbness due to narrowing of the space for the nerves in the lumbar (lower back) area of the spine. It is very common to see narrowing of the space for the spinal nerves on medical images such as MRI scans and most of the time it is does not cause any symptoms. However, in a small proportion of patients the narrowing can cause nerve symptoms and in a very small number of cases weakness in the leg. Some people are born with a narrow spine but most people who develop spinal stenosis, it occurs because of normal age-related changes. It is estimated that 9% of the general population have lumbar spinal stenosis, which increases to 49% of people over the age of 60.
23 September 2021
Back to school with a healthy back
With the new school year started across the world, the backs of young students face two challenges: the weight of the schoolbag and the static stress caused by sitting for long periods. Here are some healthy back-to-school tips from Patient Line Committee Member Dr Peter Ferlic to keep the back in good shape and avoid complaints.
6 July 2021
Looking after our Covid Backs!
The recent public health emergency has forced many of us to change our working environments and to remain at home. We have seen over 50% increases in back pain, neck pain and both.
12 March 2021
Minimally invasive spine surgery
Minimally invasive spine surgery (MISS) has been developed within the last 20 years in an effort to treat pathologies of the spine, causing only minimal tissue trauma.
17 February 2021
Cervical spondylosis and neck pain
Cervical spondylosis symptoms can be quite vague, such as headache, neck pain, dizziness, stiffness, pain spreading down the arms, numbness of fingers and difficulty with tasks such as writing, closing buttons or tying knots.
5 October 2020
Learn more about sciatica
We're pleased to announce that we have a new video available on our website talking about sciatica. Sciatica is most commonly caused by an extruded disc compressing a nerve in the lower back, causing radiating pain in one or both legs.
23 June 2020
Inflammatory Spinal Disorders
If you suffer from back pain located in one or more areas of the spine (neck, mid-back, lower back or pelvis) and, particularly if your symptoms have been present permanently or intermittently for years, you might be aware of or even being diagnosed with the label “non-specific back pain”. These words indicate that no identifiable cause of pain can be found which is the case in a vast majority of patients. However, there is a group of disorders that is clearly different and that should be considered particularly if your pain has some or all of the characteristics described later in this text.
26 May 2020
Disabling Back Pain
While most adults suffer low back pain at some point, persistent and on-going pain beyond 3 months is less common and can act as a more severe condition which affects all aspects of a person's life. Therefore, it is important to find out why the patient is suffering but also focus on the physical and psychological wellbeing.
11 May 2020
Common terms you might find in your MRI report
If you underwent an MRI scan (magnetic resonance imaging) of your spine, you would probably have a report with several incomprehensible medical terms. This article will explain the most common terms you will encounter and what their implications are for you, if you find them in your MRI report.
29 November 2019
Surgical treatment of spinal stenosis
We are pleased to announce that we have a new video available on our website about the surgical treatment of spinal stenosis. The range of treatment options for spinal stenosis, and the risks and benefits of each, should be discussed with your doctor.
29 November 2019
What is spinal stenosis?
We're pleased to announce that we have a new video available on our website talking about lumbar spinal stenosis and its symptoms. Spinal stenosis is a narrowing of the spinal canal - the space within the vertebrae for the nerves.
12 November 2019
"The Tiger Operation"
This is a topical issue raised by patients who want their back fixed. As you may know, Tiger Woods returned to win the US Masters competition in 2019, having left competitive golf in 2014 due to intractable back pain. Having had multiple operations on his knees, he then required a discectomy and a laminectomy for disc degeneration and nerve compression. With further difficulties in his back, Tiger had an Anterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion, or ALIF.
8 October 2019
Top ten tips for a healthy back
Wednesday, 16 October, the first day of the Annual Meeting, coincides with World Spine Day this year. The aim is to raise awareness of back pain and other spinal issues.
25 September 2019
EUROSPINE Patient Day 2019
During EUROSPINE 2019, the patient information event will be held in Finnish on Wednesday, 16 October from 14:30–17:00 in room 208 at the congress venue. The entry is free of charge.
13 August 2019
Digital Natives and Posture
We live in an era where health information is available at your fingertips through search engines, and everyone can publish their advice online. It can be challenging to distinguish between expert opinions and common myths about posture, in particular as it relates to posture and back pain in young digital natives. That's why we quote in this article some of the recent expert studies on the topic of posture and digital natives.
13 April 2018
Before surgery
PATIENT LINE asked spine professionals what they would advise a patient who is not certain about whether or not to go ahead with surgery.
7 February 2018
EUROSPINE Foundation
A non-profit, charitable organisation funding spine education and research
9 September 2017
What can you expect after surgery and what can you do to make things easier for yourself?
Listen to 3 basic messages given by Tamar Pincus, Chair of the Patient Line Committee.
